Retirement Plan Would Save Money

Teachers can retire early, and the Palm Beach County School District can save money, under a plan the School Board will consider on Wednesday.

A review by an actuary shows that by allowing 25-year employees to retire at 57, the school district could save $390,000 over the next five years.

The school district would review the plan in three years.

``We have to see if there is an interest,`` Schools Superintendent Tom Mills said. ``This will give us a chance to try it out.``

District officials also hope to use the early retirement program to encourage more employees to leave the system sooner so the district could avoid laying off as many people as possible.

However, the consultant estimated that only four people would retire early, based on the experiences of 10 other Florida school districts with early retirement plans.

Florida stipulates that employees must either be 62 or have 30 years in the system to receive full retirement benefits.

The district could save as much as $500,000 if it lowered the age to 55, but the up-front costs would triple, district officials said.

The Classroom Teachers Association has been fighting for five years to get an early retirement plan.

``Teaching is a very consuming profession, and many teachers by the time they have been teaching 25 years are in a position where they need to retire,`` said David Smith, CTA executive director. ``With high stress, high burnout, teachers need and deserve this kind of option.``

The CTA would prefer the district pay the up-front costs to start the plan at 55, especially with the possibility of layoffs looming, Smith said. The district`s three unions also would have to approve the proposal for it to begin.

If the School Board approves the recommendation, it would cost the school district $50,000 to get the early retirement program started. If the district had more money in its budget, it could pay the $125,000 up front to start the program at 55.

Officials hope to phase in the program so employees can retire at 55 in three years.